# New and Unimproved Workplace Rants **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 14, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638 "2015-10-14T15:44:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 167
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2022, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3322 "2022-09-09T13:45:18Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > I’m on a subcommittee at work; we’re supposed to meet on the second Thursday of each month. > > Apparently, today is _not_ the second Thursday in September, on account of last week not being a full week. Be careful, you could be put on a sub-sub-committee to try to determine how to read a calendar. ---
**Author:** ![slalexan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@slalexan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slalexan)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2022, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3323 "2022-09-09T14:46:09Z")
Our accounts payable department has made life difficult again. They have changed how they are booking invoices into SAP. We have (at least) two reports to look at invoices. One lists invoices against each PO individually. The other shows each vendor’s account as a whole. In the past, if an invoice was booked against a PO, it would show up with the same document number in both reports. They would be linked and you could follow the trail. Well, not any more. They’ve made it even harder to tell what the actual hell is going on. On top of that, some invoices book without making the 3-way match (PO, invoice and goods receipt match) and do not show as blocked in the vendor account report (though they do show as blocked in the individual PO report). I cannot fathom why they made this change. It is completely idiotic. So now, I must submit even more tickets. I gotta submit a ticket to get a PO, submit a ticket to do a goods receipt, submit a ticket when the invoice isn’t right, submit a ticket to even freaking know when a vendor is going to get paid. I’m a capital project engineer and manager. I manage projects. I do not write checks and get our vendors paid. But this is my problem because I cannot complete projects when we do not pay people. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2022, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3324 "2022-09-10T00:59:22Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > Aka, someone is a moron and forgot to prepare for the meeting, and this was the best justification they could come up with. Pretty much. The organizer has never even sent out a formal meeting notice (through Outlook, for example), preferring to walk around the building and inform people individually. > [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > I have infinitely more respect for someone who says, “I screwed up, and didn’t count last Thursday,” over someone whose ego is so fragile that they can’t admit to a minor mistake and has to make a flimsy excuse. I would actually have a tiny bit of respect for the excuse if the meeting organizer had told me in person. Instead, he gave his excuse to the lady working the switchboard, who passed it along to me. > [@enipla](#): > > Be careful, you could be put on a sub-sub-committee to try to determine how to read a calendar. 🤣 I’m already on the sub-subcommittee of people who played with Microsoft Publisher enough in high school to know how to use it to create useful, attractive forms. (I picked it for the subcommittee’s project because everyone in the company has it on their computer, unlike Acrobat Pro, and I thought other people might like to participate in creating things. 😋) ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2022, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3325 "2022-09-10T01:06:49Z")
I’m just a pain engineer, and more than once I’ve had to remind people that the company still owes vendors money. This always seems to happen with the small vendors, whose employees (or owners!) have corresponded with me enough about the order to contact me about lack of payment. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2022, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3326 "2022-09-10T08:12:13Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > I’m on a subcommittee at work; we’re supposed to meet on the second Thursday of each month. > > Apparently, today is _not_ the second Thursday in September, on account of last week not being a full week. Reminds me of a guy who was my supervisor for a thanfully short time here. He was American and we were both in the Western Australian curriculum section of our school. I noticed he’d prepared a lesson about Australian federation, stating that the country came into being on January 1, 1900. The next time I saw him, Imentioned to him that he got the date wrong. He said, “I was told that happened on the first day of the 20th Century”. My response was, “Right. That’s January 1st, 1901”. He then told me, “Well, there are two opinions on that”. I immediately retorted, “Yes, there are. There’s what you said, and then there’s the correct answer”. God, I’m glad he moved away from Beijing. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3327 "2022-09-29T15:04:00Z")
Yesterday I had a panic attack and today I was fired. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2022, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3328 "2022-09-29T16:39:10Z")
That Fing sucks. How are you not adding more to the story?! ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3329 "2022-09-30T19:16:51Z")
Sorry, I was still in shock. Wednesday I had a Karen yelling at over the phone because there was confusion if her daughter would be eligible for one of our programs (high school diploma/GED needed, she was homeschooled and only had a DIY diploma her parents made). This triggered an panic attack and I started responding in kind. I got her over to a manager (whom I told I was having an panic attack) and had to log off early because I couldn’t calm down. It took about 2 hours of laying down in a quite dark room to recover. Thursday morning I was fired because they don’t feel comfortable having me on the phones anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3330 "2022-09-30T19:27:28Z")
This one is rich, it truly is! Okay, we’ve been on a school safety crusade this year. In fact, we had a presenter here a week or so ago who did a great job presenting optimum school safety and in showing some of the common mistakes and weaknesses of schools. One of them is monitoring who comes in and out of the building. You are either an employee, or a “guest” (parent, contractor, presenter, etc). ALL employees are supposed to wear a visible ID at ALL times, and ALL “guests” are to wear a visible “guest” pass at ALL times. To get a “guest” pass, they have to check in at the guarded and heavily sheltered main office, present their picture ID, and get it run through our Raptor security software, which runs a background check on them. Sounds good, right? Well today, a lady comes to the tech office asking if someone can show her how to clock in. I say, sure, we just need your employee picture ID. It turns out she’s been working in the lunchroom for a month and doesn’t have one. ONE … MONTH. So, I tell her to go to the main office and get one printed out. The main office calls and asks, "Who’s this? She isn’t in Powerschool and is not listed as an employee. This is after ONE … MONTH. We have a person coming in and out of here who isn’t even a processed employee. ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH! 😡 Respectfully submitted by Jasmine, who will probably be murdered right in her chair in the not too distant future. 😳 ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2022, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3331 "2022-10-02T00:40:46Z")
Not to make light of the situation, but that really does sound like a good plot for at least a short story. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2022, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3332 "2022-10-02T02:49:49Z")
So sorry you got fired, **alphaboi**! I wish they could’ve worked with you and hopefully moved you to a less public-facing job (though there might not have been any of those there). But, as you look at other careers… > [@alphaboi867](#): > > This triggered an panic attack and I started responding in kind. I’m afraid you’d find this happening on a regular basis. You’d be experiencing worse Karens, and you canNOT lose it (no matter how much they deserve it). But I’ve got to tell you, there are plenty of jobs where you can just focus on your work, and never have to talk to The Public. I know some programmers (one corporate, one higher ed, one computer game software guy) who are basically hermits at work. ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2022, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3333 "2022-10-02T15:38:12Z")
Holy shit!!! 😱 ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2022, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3334 "2022-10-02T18:48:27Z")
Someone’s career in the district just got a whole lot shorter. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2022, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3335 "2022-10-06T03:51:41Z")
Despite all the talk of hybrid work and companies trying to force employees to return to the office it’s been really hard to find jobs that aren’t WFH other than retail or warehouses. Even searching for non-remote jobs is hard because I keep getting WFH results. I hate working from home and it exacerbates my metal health issues. Even my therapist has advised me to try to find something in-person. But it’s not where things are heading. I’ve tried to adapt for the past 2 years, it’s just not going to happen. I’m very pessimistic about the future. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2022, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3336 "2022-10-06T13:19:39Z")
> [@digs](#): > > I know some programmers (one corporate, one higher ed, one computer game software guy) who are basically hermits at work. 🙋‍♂️ Yeah, that’s me. I’m about half deaf though. Oddly, now that I work from home I know people better because we can chat on the keyboard. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2022, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3337 "2022-10-06T16:22:34Z")
Fuck the asshole who triggered your panic attack, and fuck your former employer for being shit at dealing with mental health issues. You are undoubtedly better off without them in the long term. Hope you can get some unemployment support in the short term, and best of luck with finding a better position. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2022, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3338 "2022-10-08T00:10:53Z")
Dearest customer, If the issues you’ve been ranting about all week were such a big concern, why didn’t you say something _in the twenty-plus fucking years_ that the current design has been in place? You’ve bought these. They’re installed in your plant, and stored in your warehouses. You’re just now having a problem with them??? Seems to me that you’re grasping at straws to prevent the processing of a massive order that includes these parts. Also, your tactic of scheduling a conference call with the engineer (me), then having a half dozen people jump on and start bombarding me with questions, was a bit unprofessional…as was sending your ‘response’ to my email by replying to one of your own emails from earlier in the week. You’re acting like a pathetic little numpty who has suddenly been given a little bit of power, and it’s gone directly to your head. I’d tell you to shove your request, but there’s no way my company is sending you the obsolete documents you demanded. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2022, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3339 "2022-10-08T04:54:57Z")
> [@WolfpackJeep](#): > > Seems to me that you’re grasping at straws to prevent the processing of a massive order that includes these parts. Wait, what? Isn’t processing orders how they make money? ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2022, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3340 "2022-10-08T16:59:19Z")
It’s how my company makes money! In this case, two of the people at the customer’s facility - the engineer (who I was dealing with/ranting about) and the procurement manager - seem to be at odds over spending so much money. While the procurement manager has been talking to my company about buying 70 of these items, the engineer has been using every excuse he can scrape up as to why this product is not acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Kelevra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/97f17d/32.png) [@Kelevra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kelevra)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2022, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638/3341 "2022-10-12T12:24:54Z")
Ok, we’ve been doing virtual meetings for a couple of years now. Can people start to remember to mute their lines when they join in a 100 person meeting? No? Great. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638.md?page=166) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-and-unimproved-workplace-rants/734638.md?page=168)